Nautel showcased several products, technologies and research projects to address HD Radio coverage.
The company brought a working demo of a studio, main transmitter and booster site and set up demonstrations of its approaches to higher digital power — using its NV Series transmitters and HD Power Boost — as well as a concept called IQ over IP, which it says simplifies deployment of cost-effective boosters for IBOC infill purposes.
The overall goal of the toolkit booth pitch, Nautel said, was to emphasize a portfolio approach that allows broadcasters to select from power increase strategies, infill strategies or a combination.
HD Power Boost, introduced in concept last year, is based on the approach of achieving higher IBOC power using Peak to Average Power Reduction techniques. Nautel presented a demonstration on a 10 kW transmitter. It says tests suggest a 10 kW transmitter that normally can produce about 4.3 kW in –10 dB HD hybrid mode can now achieve 5.4kW at –10 dB using HD Power Boost; a 10 kW box that produces about 8 kW at –20dB can provide the same 8 kW but with –15dB injection levels.
To address synchronization and interference issues related to IBOC boosters, Nautel introduced a concept called IQ over IP. The demo placed an HD Radio Exgine modulator at the studio “site” while broadcasting the I&Q data stream, a digital representation of the RF broadcast signal, to multiple transmitter, booster or translator sites. This means a manager can use just one Exgine while addressing synchronization problems.
And Nautel showed its new Importer Plus, companion to the previously introduced Exporter Plus.
